Why Japan is not so Perfect

Japan, as far as I can see, is as close to perfect as a nation can be in many ways. The trains and subways almost always run on time, people are polite and curteous, customer service here is top notch, the country itself is beautiful, cities are clean and have very low crime rates, etc, etc. I could list the positives about Japan all day long; to name a few more: the females here are beautiful and feminine (alot of American girls could learn a lot from them in terms of how to treat their men), the technology rocks, food here is really good (not only tastes good, but always looks perfect), and so on. Then there are the many negatives.

I could list the negatives all day. Just like one could for anywhere on earth. But just to name a few...racism, high suicide rates, how younger girls are viewed (and as a result of that act), earthquakes, etc. I will now go on to explain each of the 4 points I have listed in further detail below.

Racism here is a big problem. On the social level it is easier to deal with than other things, but it can get very frustrating at times. Just like it is in any other country. All the foreigners I always used to screw with knew what it was like to move to a country where everything is different, including the language. I never knew that feeling until I came here. I now know how hard it is to start a new life this far from home. I have a lot of respect for them now.

Instances in which a druneken salary man lets you know how he really feels about Americans are common. Once in a while a Japanese guy my age will try to fight me because he hates how the girls here mostly like white guys. Not a biased statement, just go to here and read the classified ads for proof. Or in which I will say somehting in Japanese perfectly and the Japanese person will look at me like I am a freak and speak to me in their horrible broken English, or even worse no matter what I say in Japanese they will shake their head as if they have no clue what I am talking about. Miho has been with me and it has happened several times where she looked at me and said "That was fucked." They are a pain in the ass, but the social level of racism here is nothing compared to the states, and thus fairly easy to get over; or atleast deal with.

The racism on the institutional level, however, is far more challenging and harder to deal with. An article titled "Law And Order" in Metropolis Magazine this week states an example of it. It explains how different measures are being taken criminals in some of the major nightlife areas after the governor of Tokyo decided to employ the "Broken Windows Theory" made famous by former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Many, including myself, see this as a good thing. It turned NY into the best city in the world making it safer and cleaner than any city it's size, except for maybe Tokyo.

The police in Japan could honestly care less about foreigners in Japan unless they do something to a Japanese person. "One officer at the Azabu Police Station (near Roppongi) puts it this way: "It used to be that crimes against foreigners by other foreigners or by Japanese didn't concern us. It's not worth the trouble and paperwork to arrest them. Crimes against Japanese by foreigners-that becomes an issue, of course. Other than that, this is an area where we always look the other way. For most Japanese, Roppongi isn't part of Japan and Japanese standards don't apply. It's like that area in Saudi Arabia where all the foreigners live and ignore the Saudi rules." (Metropolis)

I saw that for a fact when I was screwed out of a paycheck by a bar in Roppongi and had to go to the police to get it. They helped me, but only by doing as little as possible. If you, as a foreigner, commit crimes against the Japanese they will make an example of you like Elliot Spitzer did to Martha Stewart.

High Suicide Rates in Japan are a big problem. Many people here kill themselves. It is a society where suicide has always been seen as an honorable thing to do. Dating all the way back to the Samurai, for anyone who saw The Last Samurai you know what I am talking about if you know nothing else of Japanese culture. That's not a great example, but it's better than nothing. According to the article I linked to above, 27 out of every 100,000 Japanese people kill themselves, that's 100 every day.

Here is some raw data from the article. "a record 34,427 Japanese men and women took their own lives last year. According to the latest statistics from the National Police Agency (NPA), the number of suicides has increased by 7.1%, or 2,284 more lives lost than in 2002...Especially troubling is the steep increase in the number of people in their 30s taking their own lives. The death toll for this age bracket reached 4,603, an increase of 17%, translating into 668 more cases than in the previous year...As in other countries, men are far more likely to take their own lives than women, and men account for a staggering 73% of all suicides in Japan. Suicide by the elderly, 33.5%, and by people with financial problems, 25.8%, account for the two largest non-gender groupings. There has also been an alarming surge in the number of children committing suicide..." (Asia Times Online)

Also, according to that article, the number of suicides in Japan is equal to the number of suicides in the US; which has double the population. There are due to the obvious reasons that people commit suicide. The reasons here are no different than anywhere else. I thin kone factor is that psychologists are not accepted here. No matter what the problem people see psychologists in the western world. I don't know anyone that sees them here...there have been times when I could have used one, but Miho has been there to support me when I needed it. I have never even seen one advertised.

Not all people are as lucky as I am to have someone like Miho around to let them vent their anger to when angry/frustrated, cry to when they are upset, or just to talk to and have help sorting things out in their head when needed. People in that category are the salarymen. Most of them are unmarried because they work insane hours. Working all htose hours leaves them with nothing more than an empty apartment ot go home to at night. When you spend your life working all those hours and being alone it doesn't make you a very pleasant person. I know because I had to go through that last year before Christmas. I was miserable, I could not imagine living my whole life like that. I cannot say I would not take my own life because I am not in the shoes of the people who do. I can say that I could not live like that for a long time though.

Younger Girls in Japan are viewed as sex objects, just like anywhere else. The problem is that these girls, unlike in most first world countries, see themselves as nothing more than objects as well. This has led to a curfew for all minors of 11pm in Tokyo, see the above article from "Metropolis" referenced to in the arguement about racism. Also, see my post from August 15th. I feel no need to really explain this arguement because I do it on a fairly often basis just by talking about daily life here. That post and the above article in "Metropolis" more than sufficiently explain how bad Japanese girls take care of themselves in regards to sex.

Just for the hell of it I will give one more article in my defense. The main point of this article is that Japanese girls and women are now buying RU 486 online for as litle as 10,000 yen. Since they are doing so they are now having unprotected sex and letting guys ejaculate inside them all the time. Can anyone smell an explosive AIDS outbreak waiting to happen? In Japan as a whole, condoms are not used as much as they are in other countries. Mostly because their is no sexual education in schools. Once that starts to happen maybe the tide will turn. It might be done on purpose due to the staggering rate of deaths to births that is actually decreasing the Japanese population at a fairly rapid pace.

Earthquakes are a major problem. They are unpredictable, unavoidable, and can happen at any time. There is no way to stop an earthquake. There is no real way to forecast one either. Seeing as how Japan is the most seismically active country in the world that poses a problem. Also posing a problem is the probability of an earthquake of magnitude 7 or larger happening in Tokyo fairly soon.

"Munich Re is one of the world's largest international insurance companies, and as such, it is concerned with ruinous insurance losses from both natural and man-made disasters. The Munich Re report examines the vulnerability, risk and loss potential of the 50 largest cities in the world. Vulnerability is defined as the exposure to one or more natural disasters, risk as the probability of damage from a natural disaster, and loss potential as an assessment of how much economic damage is likely to be caused by a natural disaster. These three factors were multiplied to determine each city's "total risk index."

The Tokyo-Yokohama megacity, with a score of 710, is rated as having the greatest risk in the world. The No. 2 most-exposed place is the Bay Area, with a score of 167. And No. 3 is the greater Los Angeles area, with a score of 100. For natural disasters, two of the three most at-risk cities in the world are in the Golden State." (SFGate.com)

I read an article somewhere online that states the 70% probability of an earthquake 7.0 or greater in the Kanto (Tokyo-Yokohama Metro) Region in the next 30 years. That forecast is amde due to data that heavily supports it. THe main piece of info being that every 70-80 years a quake of that size happens here. Twice they have been over 8.0, a quake that big will level the city I have grown to love and make the whole damned thing look like 9/11. That is not something I am looking forward to. Should it happen anytime soon and I perish in it know that I died a happy many living over here. Much happier than I could be in NY.

All in all Tokyo, and Japan, is a great place to live. The quality of life here is as high as it could be. All the facilities are first class, I think there is a greater opportunity to achieve my goals here than there is for me back in the states, and of course my beautiful Miho is here. I could not think of a better place to live. Today's rant was not about how shitty Japan is, quite the contrary. It is showing that despite all of it's faults there is no place else I can see myself being for the next few years. Should an earthquake level Tokyo and god willing both Miho and I make it through it I will just move on to Osaka and start over there.

Fake Hot Springs?

Japan's hot springs have been hit by a scandal from which quite a few of them will not recover. A bitter ex-employee told the national media that his former employer was adding artificial coloring to the water so it maintained it's famous milky color.

That's when the planes hit the towers. Several of the town's onsens, even one owned by the mayor, closed immediately and will never open again. The mayor has resigned, his life in tatters. I wonder if he will take his own life, in Japanese society it is honrable for a man in his current state of affairs to do so. Atleast it used to be, but I am sure an exception will be made in his case.

After this was investigated it was found that some hot spring inns were using heated tap water. Now hold on a second. Hot spring water is scalding hot, steamy, murky, and smells like sulfur. How could someone who honestly knows what they are doing in going to an onsen not realize this?? I would know it immediately, and I am no expert by any means.

How lame is that?

In an unrelated story; my club, Tokyo Loose, is having it's 2 year anniversary party this friday and saturday. Come on down. It'll be a lot of fun. Email me for more details or free admission. My beautiful girlfriend and a group of my friends will be there along with many others...don't miss it.

I found yet another cool discription of Tokyo to share with people who have not yet made the trek here yet.

"Tokyo...

...At train stations hordes of commuters move swiftly like toy soldiers even at off-peak hours. Hardly anyone speaks, but it is noisy as food stall traders shout themselves hoarse.

Over 12 million people – 1/10th of Japan’s entire population – live in Tokyo. It is the country’s centre of politics, economy and culture.

Tokyo is often described as being dozens of cities within one city. Each district or area has its own distinct characteristic, but are all linked by the comprehensive transportation system. We visited Harajuku, a district reputed for things funky and quirky, and Shinjuku for the shopping.

Row upon row of shops greeted us as soon as we got down at Harajuku Station. Teenage girls and boys here seemed to have spent a great deal of time doing themselves up, I felt under-dressed. The highlight in Harajuku is a street packed with little nameless shops selling interesting items, ranging from clothes and accessories to bric-a-brac. Expect intriguing shops like the one we saw which was devoted to Gothic-themed apparel and another specialising in canine fashion.

The street was jam-packed although it was a weekday. The storekeepers, mostly teenagers, tried to attract customers with their antics, good looks and exaggerated images.

When night fell, we headed for Shinjuku. The flickering neon lights were blinding. We walked through some of the more notorious parts of Shinjuku, where prostitution houses thrived. Young guys in spiky golden hair wandered in front of the shops soliciting business.

Our guide, Micky, who hails from Cameron Highlands, has lived in Japan for two decades. He left home to pursue a degree in photography.

“I did countless jobs during my study days and after graduation. I couldn’t speak Japanese initially. I worked as a waiter in clubs with bar-top dancing,” he said.

Upon graduation, he worked as a documentary cameraman, helping organise group photography trips. Now he has an agency that provides tour guide services and still does photography part-time.

On my last morning in Japan, I took a walk around the hotel which was just next to the train station. I saw streams of executives walking in the same direction, almost at the same pace. They were expressionless – not even a sleepy look. It must not be easy to live in a perfect country. (The Malaysia Star)

Hate to burst your bubble missy but Japan, especially Tokyo, is far from perfect. Spend more than a few days here (will explore that topic tomorrow). However, Harajuku is pretty cool. The street she was talking about is Takeshita Street, which is really fun to check out once in a while.

That's where Miho took me into a store she told me sold underwear but turns out she lied and it burst the bubble of being able to see j-teen girls shopping for, and hopefully trying on, underwear all over the place.